As the owner of a holiday shop and the former owner of a home decor store, I get a lot of questions at this time of the year because we're all entertaining or trying to make our homes festive for the holidays. Here are the Top 5 questions I get, and some practical answers.

Q My young children come home from school with giant cotton-ball Santas and macaroni-covered stars and they want to hang them on my themed tree. How do I handle that?

A Hang a lit garland around your children's bedroom or playroom door. Hang all their school crafts and giant cotton-ball Santas on it, and any other collection ornaments that need to be displayed, but not on your themed tree. It creates a special place for their cool stuff that they are proud of.

Q How many lights should I put on my Christmas tree?

A A bunch! Some designers say less is more. No. More is more! One hundred lights per foot is a good rule to follow. Please make sure you follow all safety guidelines on your lights and if it's a fresh tree, make sure it stays watered and doesn't get too dry.

Q I have an "eclectic" tree, with a bunch of small trinket-type ornaments that we've collected over the years. How can I make it look more put-together?

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A There are two things you can do. Add giant ball ornaments to the tree first, fairly deep, and preferably all one color. This will create a sort of canvas or background and will show off your smaller ornaments, which will hang out in front. My tree is eclectic, and I put 18 giant (8-inch-diameter) red balls on first. Or you can add glitter stem, such as bay leaves, or ice stems to the tree first, for the same effect. Use a neutral color that accents your ornaments. Red, gold, ice or silver are always safe colors to use.

Q Should I hang my wreath or swag on the inside, or on the outside of my glass storm door?

A Hang it on the outside. I have never seen a wreath inside a storm door that didn't look smashed and imprisoned. If you are worried about safety for your wreath or swag, hang jingle bells on the back of it, as no thief will take a noisy decoration. Also, secure it to the door hanger with a plastic zip tie.

Q My holiday dinner table has too many food dishes on it, and no room for a centerpiece. How can I dress up the table and make it look more festive?

A There are lots of ideas for this! Use your chandelier or light fixture as a centerpiece. Hang a special collection of ornaments from colorful ribbon at all different levels, but make sure to keep them above conversation level. Use colorful ribbon to tie your dinner napkins. Tie rope garland or ribbon on the backs of each chair, and dangle an ornament from the center. Tie ribbon at the base of each wine or water glass. And of course, you can always use a fabric topper or runner down the center of your tablecloth.

Anne Leutze is a floral designer and former owner of AnnieMo's Decorator Warehouse in El Paso. She's operating Annie Mo's Holiday Shop at 155 McCutcheon, between Redd and Doniphan, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 4 p.m. Sundays through the holiday season. 584-4508.

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